The Epistle
September 16, 2026
Dear friends,
Thank you for filling the sanctuary this past Sunday for "The Household Upended." Philemon is a short letter, but it has a way of staying with you.
This Sunday, September 20, we reach the last stop in
Letters from Prison. Paul writes to the Colossians about being rooted and built up in Christ, and Jeremiah gives us the picture behind it: a tree planted by water, sending its roots toward the stream, unafraid when the drought comes. Six weeks in a cell taught Paul something about roots that run deep enough to hold.
I will not be the one preaching that word to you. I am away this week for continuing education, and I am glad to tell you the Rev. Dr. Valerie Bell will be in the pulpit in my place. Please welcome her the way you have always welcomed the guests God sends us.
While she is preaching, ask yourself where your own roots run. Deep enough to hold when the dry season comes, or still spreading along the surface, easily upturned?
Send your roots down deep this week.
Peace,
Pastor Jon
Greeters and Ushers Needed
Calling all smiling faces to serve the Lord as greeters and ushers! The Worship Committee is looking for volunteers to enter the ministry of greeting and ushering during our Sunday morning Worship services. It is a great way to meet folks in the church and to practice your gifts of hospitality and friendship. Participation is on a rotating basis and the schedule will accommodate those times that you will not be able to serve due to a conflict. Contact Lynne Parsons Austin for more information. Your energy and smiling face is needed.
Accessibility for the Entire Body of Christ
The Presbytery of New Covenant invites us to a workshop on Saturday, September 19, at Pines Presbyterian Church. What does it mean for a church to be truly welcoming? The day offers practical ways to welcome and accommodate people with a wide range of abilities and experiences, including neurodiversity, physical disabilities, deaf and hard-of-hearing members, people living with dementia and Alzheimer's, and people from many cultural and linguistic backgrounds. Congregations from across the presbytery will gather for a day of learning, conversation, and ideas we can carry home.
Lunch is provided and the event is free. Register on Tuesday Connect, or contact Lynne Parsons and she will help you register. Save the date.
Caring and Fellowship Committee Meets September 27
The Caring and Fellowship Committee meets on the third Sunday of each month, but this month's meeting has moved to the fourth Sunday, September 27, after worship, due to Session business on the 20th. All are welcome.
Gift of Empathy Class
The Gift of Empathy Class begins its weekly meetings on Thursday, September 17, and continues on Thursday, September 24.
Memorial Service for Brad Urquhart
A memorial service for Brad Urquhart will be held on Saturday, September 26, at 11:00 a.m., with a reception to follow in McPhail Hall.
BRAES Gala Tickets on Sale
Tickets are now on sale for the BRAES Interfaith Ministries Gala on October 1. Peter Sparaco will be selling tickets in the Narthex after worship over the next four weeks: $50 each, cash or check payable to BRAES Interfaith Ministries.
Dan Herron's Practical Tips
Dan Herron shares a few practical tips this week.
Protecting devices while charging: a grounded single-outlet adapter with an on/off switch plugs into your 120-volt receptacle or extension cord, giving you an easy way to switch a charger on and off. These are sold individually or in packs of up to three.
Kroger gas points: Kroger now requires a 7-day wait between online feedback sessions for gas points. Submitting too soon will show your Kroger number as "invalid." When a receipt earns "success" on gas points, mark it with the date and day of the week, so you know when you're eligible to submit again.
Planning for '26 income tax: begin collecting the name, address, and 501(c)(3) proof for each charity you give to. Two new deductions are worth researching: the new $1,000-per-person charitable deduction, and the RMD-with-QCD feature for seniors. Also begin collecting your income tax forms; make a list, download each one, and see which you might use. The IRS says many taxpayers miss deductions, especially the new ones for seniors - look into the starting age for the 1040-SR, and check Schedule 1-A, where several of the new deductions appear. Also look into the RMD beginning age and QCDs, especially if you might take the standard deduction instead of itemizing.
Healing Hearts
Led by Lisa Sparaco, a licensed clinical social worker and member of our church, Healing Hearts offers a safe, faith-filled place for those walking through grief. The group gathers in the Prayer Room of the Church Office Building to share stories, receive encouragement, and walk together through seasons of loss. As a ministry of St. John’s, its focus is care, prayer, and the comfort of Christian community.
Upcoming Healing Hearts Meetings
- Monday, September 28, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon
With hearts united in hope, we lift these names into the healing presence of God.
- Linda Dobbin, health concerns
- Fran and her children as they mourn Brad's passing
- Mary Hughes and her family, in the death of her brother
- Lisa, health concerns
- Sandy, health concerns
- Patti, health concerns
- Alice's grandson, Marc, health concerns
- Cathy, Cindy Bergman’s sister, health
- Gayle Morales, friend of Alice Rubio, recovering from hip surgery
- Jessica Ivete Robles, friend of Alice Rubio, awaiting a kidney transplant
- Phyllis Freeman, receiving hospice care in the Dallas area
- Tom Edmondson and Kristi, his caregiver
- Kelsey Wiltz, health concerns
- Scott Moore
- Alice Rubio
- St. John’s college students
- Raina Bailey and the families in our PCHAS homes
- One Hope Preschool families and staff
- Randy Finfrock, former member and friend of David Rainwater, health
How Can We Pray for You?
If you would like to add a name to the prayer list or keep a current name listed, please reply to this email and let us know. Thank you for helping us care for one another through prayer.
Happy Birthday
Dan Herron (Sept 1)
Lea Sanford (Sept 2)
San Juana Flores (Sept 3)
Michael Rodgers (Lynne Parsons Austin's son) (Sept 6)
Yor Ator (Sept 7)
Arwin Jump (Sept 11)
Kerry Gaber (Sept 12)
Allison Hardy (Sept 17)
Mel Liljedahl (Sept 20)
Sandy Kattner (Sept 21)
Somer Assad (Sept 22)
Bryan Boyd (Laurie Henderson's son) (Sept 27)
Lindsey Sen-Roy (Sept 28)
Happy Anniversary
Dave and Rose Muanza (Sept 18)
Tom and Kristi Edmonsond (Sept 22)
Thursday, September 17
- 6:30 pm The Gift of Empathy Class begins
Sunday, September 20, 17th Sunday after Pentecost
- 9:30 am Sunday School for Adults, Systematic Theology, Session Room
- 11:00 am Worship Service, live in sanctuary and on Facebook, the Rev. Dr. Valerie Bell preaching
- 1:30 pm Book Study on Zoom
Coming Events
- Thurs, Sept 17, Gift of Empathy Class
- Sat, Sept 19, Accessibility Workshop at Pines Presbyterian
- Thurs, Sept 24, Gift of Empathy Class
- Sat, Sept 26, Memorial Service for Brad Urquhart
- Sun, Sept 27, Caring and Fellowship Committee meets
- Mon, Sept 28, Healing Hearts, 11 am
- Wed, Sept 30, Men's Group Meeting
- Thursday, Oct 1, BIM Gala
- Thursday, Nov 26, Thanksgiving Day
- Thurs, Dec 24, Christmas Eve Service, 7 pm
Church Calendar Online
For other dates, see St. John's Calendar online: https://www.stjohnspresby.org/events/
Letters from Prison:
Paul's Radical Freedom Behind Bars
September 20 - "Rooted and Built Up"
OT: Jeremiah 17:7-8 (Like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots)
NT: Colossians 2:6-15 (Rooted and built up in him, established in the faith)
Coming This Fall: "Generous Trouble"
Starting September 27, we begin a new sermon series for the stewardship season:
Generous Trouble: When Kingdom Economics Interrupt Our Plans.
Scripture keeps circling back to money, and it rarely leaves us comfortable. A widow gives her last coin. A rich man walks away sad. A whole community gathers only what it needs and no more. Nine weeks, nine stories, one question underneath all of them: what happens when God's economy interrupts ours?
We'll move from the Jubilee's reset button, through widows and rulers and a tax collector who gives away half of everything he owns, to All Saints' Sunday and the Reign of Christ. Along the way, expect a few sermons that unsettle before they comfort. That's the trouble worth having.
Mark your calendar and come ready to be interrupted.
